U.S. patent number 4,350,338 [Application Number 06/131,385] was granted by the patent office on 1982-09-21 for football practice aid.
Invention is credited to Randall L. May.
United States Patent |
4,350,338 |
May |
September 21, 1982 |
Football practice aid
Abstract
A football practice aid consists of a special harness
arrangement for use with a regulation little league, junior high
school, high school, college or professional type football. The
harness comprises a plurality of non-elastic cords of a size to fit
into and be recessed in the seams of the football which extend from
end to end thereof. The harness is preferably slightly undersized
and is installed on the football prior to inflation so that the
football when inflated is very tightly encompassed by the harness.
The harness is connected to one or more spinners which permit
complete rotation during use. The spinners are connected to and in
a non-elastic cord which in turn is connected to an elastic
supporting member which is secured on a supporting post or stake or
the like. This harness permits use of the football for practice
passing and practice punting and allows complete spin of the ball
around its longitudinal axis while in use. The elastic supporting
member is effective to cause the ball to be returned automatically
after reaching the maximum extent of the non-elastic cord and the
elastic supporting member. The return of the ball is accomplished
with a full natural spin with the result that the ball will have
the same characteristics when caught as would be obtained if the
ball were passed or punted by another player and then caught.
Inventors: |
May; Randall L. (Huntington
Beach, CA) |
Family
ID: |
22449233 |
Appl.
No.: |
06/131,385 |
Filed: |
March 17, 1980 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
473/423 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B
69/0079 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A63B
69/00 (20060101); A63B 067/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;273/55R,55B,58C,26E,185C,185D,26EA,196,198,2R,319,321,332,334,413,414
;46/61 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Pinkham; Richard C.
Assistant Examiner: Brown; T.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Mosely; Neal J.
Claims
I claim:
1. The combination of a football practice aid with a regulation
little league, junior high school, collegiate or professional
football having four equally spaced grooves defined by seams
extending longitudinally thereof, said practice aid comprising
a harness comprising four equally spaced non-elastic cords
operatively secured each to another at opposite ends thereof and
supported tightly in the grooves of said football and substantially
recessed therein,
tether means comprising
a non-elastic cord operatively secured at one end to the portion of
said harness where said four cords are secured together and
positioned at one end of said football at the longitudinal axis
thereof,
means connected to said cord permitting spin or rotation of said
football about its longitudinal axis or otherwise without twisting
the same,
an elastic supporting member operatively secured at one end to the
other end of said non-elastic cord, and
a support member operatively secured to the other end of said
elastic member and operable to be supported on a support fixed in
the earth, and
said practice aid being operable to permit said football to be
passed or punted with a normal spin and to be returned by said
elastic member to the player using the same.
2. A football practice aid combination according to claim 1 in
which
said spin permitting means includes at least one spinner connected
in said tether means.
3. A football practice aid combination according to claim 2 in
which
said tether means includes spinners supported on opposite ends of
said tether non-elastic cord.
4. A football practice aid combination according to claim 1 in
which
said support member comprises a member having two walls meeting in
a right dihedral angle, and
straps positioned in said walls operable to secure said member to
said fixed support.
5. A football practice aid combination according to claim 1 in
which
said support member comprises a member of channel shape with the
side walls thereof having supported thereon
straps positioned in said walls operable to secure said member to
said fixed support.
6. A football practice aid combination according to claim 1 in
which
said elastic supporting member comprises an elastic tubing with
plugs in each end having support members connected to said first
named support member and said non-elastic cord respectively.
7. A football practice aid combination according to claim 1 in
which
said harness includes a ring member in which said cords are looped
and operable to fit one end of said football at the longgitudinal
axis thereof, and
the cords at the opposite end of said harness from said ring member
being interlooped and tied together with said interlooped end being
operable to fit the opposite end of said football at the
longitudinal axis thereof.
8. A football practice aid combination according to claim 7 in
which
said harness includes a supporting boot having substantially the
configuration of the end of said football and having openings
through which said harness cords are threaded and supporting said
interlooped portion.
9. A football practice aid combination according to claim 7 in
which
said harness includes a soft non-elastic cord interlooped through
the ends of said harness cords looped through said ring member and
operable to support said harness at the longitudinal axis of said
football when assembled thereon, and
one end of said soft non-elastic cord being secured to the
non-elastic cord of said tether means.
10. A football practice aid combination according to claim 7 in
which
said harness cords are looped through said ring member so that one
pair of oppositely extending cords are looped over the same and one
pair of oppositely extending cords are looped under the same to
secure said ring member firmly against one end of said football
when assembled thereon.
11. A football practice aid combination according to claim 1 in
which
said non-elastic cords comprise an extruded plastic monofilament
having a continuous length of metal wire as a core.
12. A football practice aid combination according to claim 1 in
which the cords of said harness are supported in said grooves with
one cord positioned underneath the laces of said football.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to new and useful improvements in football
practice aids and more particularly to a device whereby a football
may be passed or punted and will automatically return to the
player.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
In the practice of the game of football, particularly in the
passing and punting phases thereof, it is desirable to have the
ball returned to the player without the necessity of having another
party retrieve the ball or having the player retrieve the ball
himself. It is also desirable sometimes to practice punting or
passing of a football in confined space either indoors or adjacent
to a playing field where the extent of movement of the ball must be
restricted. There are numerous devices which have been designed for
returning balls of various types to a player during practice.
Quin U.S. Pat. No. 1,502,058 discloses a rubber ball having a cord
for retrieval during practice.
Ferguson U.S. Pat. No. 4,071,239 discloses a tennis racket with a
practice ball tethered thereto.
Tapp U.S. Pat. No. 3,351,343 discloses a practice ball which is
spherical in shape and which has wide straps surrounding the ball
and tethered for purpose of recovering the ball during
practice.
Minchin U.S. Pat. No. 3,709,491 discloses a wide harness for
fitting around a ball which is to be tethered for ease of recovery
during practice.
Moore U.S. Pat. No. 4,147,353 discloses a harness for a spherical
soccer ball connected to a tether for recovery of the ball during
practice.
Pruitt U.S. Pat. No. 3,227,450 discloses a wide elastic band
fastened around a football and connected by elastic cords to stakes
in the ground, the arrangement probiding for return of the ball
during kicking practice.
Bellagamba U.S. Pat. No. 3,525,523 discloses another kicking
practice tether for a football having the tether fastened to the
laces of the football and connected to an elastic cord supported on
stakes in the ground.
Masters U.S. Pat. No. 3,042,404 discloses a specially designed
football having an end loop connected to an elastic tether
supported on a headband on a player using the ball in practice.
Civita U.S. Pat. No. 3,940,133 discloses a specially designed
football of plastic foam construction which is connected to a
tether for recovery during practice.
Schachner U.S. Pat. No. 3,804,409 discloses a specially designed
football having a connector supported inside the cover of the ball
and held in place by the laces of the ball and connected to a
tether for recovery of the ball during practice kicking.
The several prior art patents listed above all suffer from the
defect that they either require the use of specially designed,
non-regulation balls, or have connecting means or tethering means
which are connected to the ball in a manner preventing the normal
handling of the ball. The devices shown in the above noted patents
do not permit the handling of an unobstructed regulation football
during practice and are not connected to the tethering apparatus in
a manner permitting free rotation of the ball about its
longitudinal axis and effecting return of the ball with a spin
corresponding to that encountered when the ball is passed or punted
by one player and caught by another.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One of the objects of this invention is to provide a new and
improved football practice aid which permits normal handling of a
regulation football in passing and punting practice and returns the
ball to the player using the same.
Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved
football practice aid comprising an improved football harness which
does not interfere with the normal handling characteristics of a
regulation football and is connected to elastic means for returning
the ball after punting or passing.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a new and
improved football practice aid which facilitates passing or punting
practice and permits normal handling of a regulation ball and free
rotation of the ball around its longitudinal axis during practice
and which returns the ball after punting or passing with a spin
corresponding substantially to the spin produced in punting or
passing.
Other objects of this invention will become apparent from time to
time throughout the specification and claims as hereinafter
related.
The foregoing objects are accomplished in this invention by a
football practice aid comprising a novel supporting harness for a
regulation football and tethering equipment associated therewith. A
football practice aid consists of a special harness arrangement for
use with a regulation little league, junior high school, high
school, college or professional type football. The harness
comprises a plurality of non-elastic cords of a size to fit into
and be recessed in the seams of the football which extend from end
to end thereof. The harness is preferably slightly undersized and
is installed on the football prior to inflation so that the
football when inflated is very tightly encompassed by the harness.
The harness is connected to one or more spinners which permit
complete rotation during use. The spinners are connected to and in
a non-elastic cord which in turn is connected to an elastic
supporting member which is secured on a supporting post or stake or
the like. This harness permits use of the football for practice
passing, catching and practice punting and allows complete spin of
the football around its longitudinal axis while in use. The elastic
supporting member is effective to cause the ball to be returned
automatically after reaching maximum extent of the non-elastic cord
and the elastic supporting member. The return of the ball is
accomplished with a full natural spin with the result that the ball
will have the same characteristics when caught as would be obtained
if the ball were passed or punted by another player and then
caught.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a view of a preferred embodiment of a football practice
aid constructed and used in accordance with this invention.
FIG. 1a is a view of a portion of the non-elastic filament used,
with the wire core exposed.
FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a regulation little league, junior
high school, high school, college or professional football.
FIG. 3 is a view in elevation of a harness constituting part of a
preferred embodiment of this invention for use with a football as
shown in FIG. 2.
FIG. 4 is a detail view of the left end of the harness shown in
FIG. 3.
FIG. 5 is a detail view of the right end of the harness shown in
FIG. 3 without the supporting connecting loop.
FIG. 6 is a detail view of the connection of the supporting loop to
the ends of the harness shown in FIG. 5.
FIG. 7 is a detail view showing the connection of the supporting
loop of FIG. 6 to the end of the supporting cord for the
tether.
FIG. 8 is a detail view of the bracket for supporting the tether on
a post or stake of the like and further illustrates the elastic
supporting member to which the tether cord is secured.
FIG. 9 is an end view of the supporting bracket of FIG. 8.
FIG. 10 is an end view of an alternate embodiment of the supporting
bracket of FIG. 8.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to the drawings by numerals of reference and more
particularly to FIG. 1, there is shown a football 1 which is
tethered to a supporting post or stake 2 or the like. Football 1 is
a regulation little league, junior high school, high school,
college or professional football. Supporting post or stake 2 may be
any suitable support including a goalpost, utility pole, etc.
Football 1 is supported on a non-elastic cord 3 which in turn is
secured on an elastic supporting member 4 which is secured on a
bracket 5 which is held on supporting post or stake 2 by straps 6
and 7. Various details of this football practice aid will be
described in connection with the individual detail view shown in
FIGS. 3-10.
In FIG. 2, it is seen that football 1 is a regulation football
having a plurality of grooves spaced 90.degree. apart and extending
from end to end. The grooves are defined by seams 8 and 9 and the
corresponding unnumbered seams on the opposite side of the football
as seen in FIG. 2. The ball is provided with the usual laces 10 and
has an opening 11 for receiving a needle valve or the like for
inflation.
Football 1 is surrounded by a supporting harness 12 which is
constructed of a non-elastic cord. The cords which make-up harness
12 are a non-elastic in the sense that a steel wire is non-elastic.
They are non-elastic in the sense that they undergo only a minute
deformation or stretch under ordinary tensions. This is to be
distinguished from an elastic cord such as rubber or plastic. The
harness 12 is preferably formed of a continuous cord which is
preferably 80 lb. test Steelon. Steelon is a fine steel wire inside
an extruded nylon filament (see FIG. 1a filament 3, 13, 14, 15 or
16 with wire core 3a exposed). The non-elastic cord in harness 12
is non-elastic in the sense that steel wire is non-elastic, i.e.
does not stretch appreciatably under tension, as compared to a
rubber or plastic unreinforced cord. The non-elastic cord which
makes-up harness 12 is preferably a single continuous length of
cord which is formed into four separate loops which fit into the
respective grooves 8 and 9 (and the unnumbered grooves on the
opposite side of the football 1) with one of the loops extending
under the laces 10 of football 1. The individual loops of harness
12 are of a size which fits tightly into the grooves formed by the
seams of the football 1 and are substantially recessed therein.
While the individual loops of harness 12 constitute a continuous
length of cord, these loops are numbered 13, 14, 15 and 16,
respectively. At the right end of FIG. 3, it is seen that the loops
of harness 12 extend through a small grommet 17 with loops 13 and
15 extending under the grommet 17 and loops 14 and 16 extending
over grommet 17. This arrangement when tightened on the right end
of football 1 would cause grommet 17 to fit tightly and flatly
against the end of the football. At the left end of the harness 12
as shown in FIG. 3, it is seen that the individual loops of the
non-elastic cord extend through slits 18b in an end boot 18 and are
interlooped as indicated at 19. The ends of loops 13 and 16 are
tied together as indicated at 19 and the wire tightly twisted and
preferably fused by heating the nylon coating. The harness 12 is
preferably formed in an initial size which would fit very tightly
inside the grooves formed by seams 8 and 9 of football 1. Harness
12 is preferably slightly undersized in relation to the dimensions
of football 1 to insure that it fits tightly thereon. Harness 12 is
assembled on football 1 by deflating football 1 and then fitting
harness 12 in place and reinflating the ball. As previously noted,
during installation of harness 12, one of the non-elastic loops,
e.g. loop 13, is assembled on groove 9 and extends under the laces
10 on football 1.
In FIG. 6, there is shown an enlarged or exaggerated view of the
non-elastic loops 13-16 at the right end of harness 12 with grommet
17 removed. FIG. 6 illustrates the connection of harness 12 to the
tethering cord. There is shown a loop of a strong, soft, knitted or
woven non-elastic cord 22 which is looped through the ends of
harness 12 and looped through itself providing a connecting loop
for connection on grommet 17a on the tethering cord. The loop of
the soft woven or knitted cord 22 is secured to itself by a knot or
other suitable connecting means. Loop 22 is shown in FIG. 7 to be
connected to ring 17a which, in turn, is connected to snap hook 24
on ring 25 extending from one side of spinner 26. The other side of
spinner 26 is provided with a ring 27 in which there is looped a
portion of non-elastic cord 3 which is twisted around itself as
indicated at 28 and secured by a suitable clamping or securing
means. The cord 3 may be secured at 28 by heating to fuse the nylon
coating of the steel wire in the cord or may be secured by any
suitable external clamp or retainer. Cord 3 is a non-elastic cord
and is preferably 400 lb. test woven nylon cord or extruded nylon
filament.
In FIG. 8, it is seen that the other end of cord 3 is connected to
loop or ring 29 on spinner 30. Cord 3 extends through loop 29 and
is rewound on itself as indicated at 31 where it is secured in
place by fusing the nylon coating or by application of a suitable
external clamp. The other side of spinner 30 has a securing ring 32
which is secured on the ring 33 at the base of snap hook 34.
Non-elastic cord 3 is fastened by means of snap hook 34 to ring 35
which is secured in a plug 36 which is tightly fitted in the
elastic supporting member 4. Elastic supporting member 4 is a
strong elastic tubing, preferably a surgical rubber or plastic
tubing. The tubing used is preferably about two feet long and has
an I.D. of 3/16" and an O.D. of 7/16". Plug 36 is preferably a
piece of nylon rod having an O.D. of 1/4". The other end of elastic
tubing 4 has a plug 37 secured therein and which supports a ring 38
which is connected on the ring 39 extending from supporting bracket
5. Ring 38 is preferably a snap hook for ease of assembly. Bracket
5 is provided with slots 40 and 41 in which there are supported
straps 6 and 7, respectively. In FIGS. 9 and 10, there are shown
end views of bracket 5 into alternate forms. In FIG. 9, bracket 5
is shown as constructed from angle iron or the like. In FIG. 10,
bracket 5 is shown to have a channel-shaped construction. In each
of FIG. 9 and 10, it is seen that straps 6 and 7 are connectable to
straps 6a and 7a having buckles 6b and 7b, respectively.
OPERATION
In normal operation, this football practice aid would be used by
fastening bracket 5 to a pole or post 2, or the like, by means of
straps 6 and 7. Pole 2 may be any suitable support such as
goalposts, telephone and utility poles or the like.
Football 1 is used, as indicated, supported in harness 12. Since
non-elastic cords 13-16 are very strong and very small diameter,
they fit in grooves 8 and 9 (and the unnumbered grooves on the
other side of the ball) which are formed by the seams of the ball.
Cords 13-16 are recessed into grooves 8 and 9 (and the other
grooves) and do not extend appreciably above the surface of the
ball. Preferably, the cords of harness 12 are completely recessed
into grooves 8 and 9. With this construction of harness 12, ball 1
can be handled for practice without any interference from the
supporting harness. The ball can be used for practice passing,
receiving and punting. Since the harness fits inside the grooves or
seams of the football it does not interfere with the aerodynamic
characteristics of a regulation football. The ball will have the
normal rotation when it is passed or punted and will extend in
practice for the entire length of the non-elastic cord 3. When the
ball 1 is thrown or kicked and reaches the limit of movement of
non-elastic cord 3 the elastic tubing (or other suitable elastic
support) 4 will stretch and limit the forward movement of the ball.
At that point, the elastic 4 will pull the ball backward with
sufficient force to cause it to return to the player along
approximately the same areal path as the path on which it was
passed or punted. In fact, the arrangement of non-elastic cord 3
and elastic tubing 4 and the various supporting members is
effective to cause the ball to maintain a normal spin or rotation
as it is being returned to the player that is practicing with it.
The spinners 26 and 30 which are provided in the connection between
the harness 12 and elastic tubing 4 are of a construction which
permit free and substantially unobstructed rotation to a full
360.degree., or more, rotation.
This football practice aid differs from prior art practice aids for
football in a number of respects and has several advantages which
have previously been observed. The harness fits to the
configuration of any regulation little league, junior high school,
high school, college or professional football. The harness cords
fit inside or recessed in the seams or grooves of the football and
one of the cords passes not only along the groove but also under
the laces 10 of the ball. The retaining boots 18 and 18a at the
ends of the football 1 fit the end of the ball closely and do not
interfere with the aerodynamic characteristics of the ball. There
is no obstruction when gripping the ball and the player is handling
a ball of regulation size and shape with no external harness or
support which will alter the feel of the ball in practice. In
passing, catching and punting the ball is handled and used with no
external obstruction. The ball can spin freely through the entire
path of travel when passed or punted and retains the spin when it
is pulled back to the player by the elastic tubing 4. The rotation
of the ball when it is launched is completely natural and
corresponds to the natural or normal rotation of the ball when
passed or punted. When the ball returns the rotation is the natural
or normal rotation of a ball coming to a receiver. This practice
aid is therefore effective for passing and for punting and for
catching or receiving a passed or punted ball. Also, the ball can
be disconnected and used in regular practice or play without
removing the harness.
While this invention has been described fully and completely with
special emphasis upon a single preferred embodiment, it should be
understood that within the scope of the appended claims this
invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described
herein.
* * * * *